Sales is Marketing – But Marketing is NOT Just Sales

If you own a business or have ever been employed at one, you have probably heard the phrase “sales is marketing.” The phrase “sales is marketing” is true, but it is important to note that this doesn’t work when it is reversed. Marketing does not just involve sales, and there are many different facets to marketing that go beyond just your conversion rate and ability to get people to purchase your product.

Why Sales is Marketing

We say “sales is marketing” because all purchases of your product or service are rooted in marketing. You let people know, somehow, either directly or indirectly, about your business, and they became interested enough to search for your information, locate it, and then purchase what you have to offer. If people don’t know about your company, they won’t buy from you. Even if you have the most outdated marketing strategy in the world, your sales will still, in some way, be rooted to your marketing and advertising. In this day and age, businesses have exposure with just the click of the button. In order to improve sales, you have to invest in a clear marketing strategy that will reach a target audience.

However…

While “sales is marketing,” that phrase does not go both ways. Marketing is not just sales. That shouldn’t be the end-all, be-all goal of your marketing campaign, because if it is, then your marketing will be far less effective than it can be. There are many different goalposts when it comes to marketing campaigns and advertising, and sales, while it is the main one, is certainly not standalone. Here are other reasons that marketing is not just all about sales.

Spreading the Word

You’re not just approaching one customer and asking them to buy from you. Marketing, particularly online marketing, is spreading the word to a large group of people—your target audience—and then disseminating information that will lead some of them to you. Marketing is about increasing the scope of the audience and, in turn, the amount of people that will hear your message and be led to your company.

Marketing Works Indirectly

Marketing can also be an indirect process. The majority of people give product recommendations on social media, whether they’re posting pictures of what they bought at a particular store or giving advice. Product recommendations are an example of how indirect marketing works; you marketed, got the attention of one person, who then attracted the attention of another.

There IS a Process to Marketing

The process doesn’t just include two steps: Market and then Sell. The relationship between the two is not necessarily linear. Marketing involve trial and error, and when you do attract someone’s attention, you have to lead them to your website and then convert them. Your “conversion rate” is how many people visit your website and then purchase what you have to offer. This rate isn’t 100%, and the ratio of marketing efforts you make and sales you achieve will never be 1:1.

It’s Also About Your Business’s Reputation

Marketing is about not just sales, but also making your business look reputable. You want to demonstrate your business’s character, as well as what you have to offer. Your website isn’t just a list of products saying “Buy This.” It also contains information about the company, its origins, and other character-defining elements that will achieve some level of personal interaction between you and a client.

Sales is marketing, but marketing is not just sales. Marketing is about more than just sales, although that is the primary goal. There are a lot of reasons to engage in a marketing campaign, and sales is not the only one.